BTW, I totally agree with badelman, SorinBasement and others who think that Niele should find the best coach she can to help the team, regardless of any previous association with ND.
Up to this point, Niele has talked about players having to have "the right fit" and that seems to translate into having a vetting period and/or experience with ND andor, perhaps, with Niele.
As such, for a short turnaround for Neiele (and the Bench, for that matter), I just listed the ND players/personnel (Angie P.) that she could look at...which she probably will, anyways.
A night after posting this, I come back to Ashley Barlow, who is Katrina Merriweather's top aide at Memphis and in her early 30's, plus Charel Allen, who most certainly interviewed for the post Michaela ultimately got.
Both are experienced, yet relatively young and could relate to players.
Remember, I flew the idea of Lindsay Allen -- even though she has no formal experience in coaching per see -- well, Troy just hired Chelsea Dungee, another WNBA player fresh off multiple cuts to be an assistant.
Whereas Coach Ivey was looking for an experienced hand when she hired Coach Q a few years back, I'm thinking Niele seems quite comfortable in her shoes right now and still has Coach O around. Plus, Michaela has been active and obviously has involvement. So, I could see a young(er) person here to join Mike and help relate to younger players.
Stay tuned.